At least 14 people died and six have been hospitalised in critical condition after consuming toxic liquor in northern India.

Seven people were arrested on allegations they supplied the toxic liquor in five villages near the city of Amritsar in northern Punjab, senior police officer Maninder Singh said on Tuesday.

The police had launched a crackdown to destroy the network of spurious liquor supplies in the area following the incident, Singh said.

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The local administration deployed medics to the villages to check on people who drank the contaminated liquor, said Sakshi Sawhney, a senior government official in Amritsar.

Those showing symptoms were being shifted to hospitals to ensure the death toll did not rise, Sawhney said.

Investigators have not said what ingredients were suspected of causing the deaths and sickness.

In India, deaths from consumption of contaminated liquor manufactured locally is rampant, mainly in rural areas, as people lap them up for cheaper prices.